ATMs open for the holidays, but not all are equal

Although banks will be closed over the six-day Lunar New Year holiday, which started yesterday, consumers can still use automated teller machines (ATMs) nationwide to withdraw cash, the Financial Supervisory Commission said last week.

But the financial regulator reminded consumers that ATMs have varying withdrawal limits, which differ between banks. At the same time, the commission has demanded that financial institutions ensure the smooth functioning of their machines during this period.

According to reports in the local Chinese-language media yesterday, some banks' ATMs have a maximum daily limit of NT$300,000 (US$9,380), while most banks set the daily limit at between NT$100,000 and NT$150,000.

Citibank Taiwan (花旗銀行) offers the highest daily limit of NT$300,000, or NT$1.8 million for the duration of the lunar holiday, according to the reports.

Cathay United Bank (國泰世華銀行), E.Sun Bank (玉山銀行), First Commercial Bank (第一銀行), Hua Nan Commercial Bank (華南銀行), the Bank of Taiwan (台灣銀行), Taipei Fubon Bank (台北富邦銀行) and Chang Hwa Commercial Bank (彰化銀行) allow customers to withdraw a maximum of NT$100,000 per day, or NT$600,000 over six days. The International Commercial Bank of China (ICBC, 中國國際商銀) and Chinatrust Commercial Bank (中國信託) have a daily limit of NT$120,000, or NT$720,000 over the six-day holiday.

However, some banks use a different model to calculate withdrawal limits.

Jih Sun International Bank (日盛國際商銀), for instance, has a daily limit of NT$100,000, but only NT$200,000 can be withdrawn during the Lunar New Year holiday, as Jan. 28 to Jan. 30 are seen as one business day and Jan. 31 to Feb. 2 are counted as one day.

Entie Commercial Bank (安泰銀行) offers a limit of NT$120,000 over the entire holiday period, while the Shanghai Commercial & Savings Bank (上海商銀) and Cosmos Bank Taiwan (萬泰銀行) limit total withdrawals to NT$100,000 over the six days.

The commission reminded consumers that if they find any abnormalities, such as no cash being offered although the amount is subtracted from their balance, they should keep the transaction receipt and call the 24-hour consumer hotline numbers posted on the machines.

If no immediate help is offered by banks, consumers can call the government-funded Financial Information Service Co (財金公司) at (02) 2630-1222 for assistance.